


Giving it a name

by DamnItMish



Category: Brooklyn Nine-Nine (TV)
Genre: Attention Deficit Hyperactivity Disorder, Daddy Issues, F/M, Frozen (mentioned), Jake Peralta has ADHD, Parenthood
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2020-04-30
Updated: 2020-04-30
Packaged: 2021-03-01 18:52:54
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings
Chapters: 1
Words: 5,913
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/23931856
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/DamnItMish/pseuds/DamnItMish
Summary: Mac's preschool teacher informs Jake about some things she noticed and how she suspects he might have ADHD. Jake didn't expect that at all. Amy, on the other hand, isn't exactly surprised. Is there a reason for that?
Relationships: Charles Boyle & Jake Peralta, Jake Peralta/Amy Santiago, Ray Holt & Jake Peralta
Comments: 12
Kudos: 140





	Giving it a name

Jake was in the middle of some paperwork when his wife stormed over to his desk and demanded his immediate attention “Mac’s preschool just called. He fell off a tree. His only injury is a little bump on the top of his head and his teacher said he had seemed fine otherwise but suggested we pick him up anyway.”

  
Her husband jumped off his chair immediately “I will pick him up. You stay here and keep being brilliant,” Jake gave her a quick reassuring smile before making his way to the elevator “You’re telling Holt," he yelled through the already closing elevator doors.

* * *

  
Jake’s heart started racing as soon as he entered the preschool grounds. He wondered if he should be used to his son hurting himself after four years of knowing him and his clumsiness. Amy always jokingly blamed Jake for both of these traits and Jake had to admit she might be right. He did fall a lot when he was a child and still did if he was being honest.

A loud children’s voice interrupted his thought journey “Daddy!” Mac squealed and jumped into his father's arms “I fell off a tree and I cried because it hurt but I’m fine now. It’s just a little bump and barely hurts anymore but I’m still glad you’re here to pick me up. Maybe we can watch TV for the rest of the day or visit Grandpa Ray and Mommy at work," the last part, he whispered as to not let anyone know his clearly evil plans for getting a day off from preschool. Jake couldn’t help but smile to himself and kiss his son’s cheek multiple times which made the four-year-old giggle with joy.

“Sounds like a great plan, Mackie Mouse," Jake answered while taking a closer look at the empty hallway they were standing in “We have to talk to your teacher first though. How did you even find me all by yourself and why aren’t you with the other children on the school playground?”

“I heard Mrs. Smith talk to Mommy on the phone and wanted to know who will pick me up. So I decided to ask if I can use the bathroom,” Mac trailed off and took a careful look around before letting his voice go quiet again “But then I walked right by the bathroom and to the big door we go through every morning. Please, don’t tell anyone," with those innocently looking brown eyes staring up at him, Jake couldn’t help but agree to keep his son’s secret.

“You can’t just walk off though. You know that, right? What if you get lost in here? It’s a pretty big building," Jake clarified but started walking with Mac still in his arms nonetheless “Also, you are getting pretty heavy, bud. Permission to let their highness walk on their own?”

Mac made his thinking face for a few moments before saying “Permission granted," as soon as Mac’s feet touched the ground he was running again. Jake thought he should have had seen this one coming as he ran after Mac.

Panting, Jake finally made it to the school playground and stood in front of Mrs. Smith just a few minutes later “Hi, I’m here to pick up Mac and-” Jake paused his sentence to catch his breath “I didn’t know he could run that fast," He looked around the playground “Not to sound like a bad parent or something but where has the little bugger run off too anyway?”

Mrs. Smith looked at Jake with an amused facial expression “He’s drawing a picture over there," she pointed at a nearby bench.  
“Oh, thank god," Jake exclaimed and let out a relieved breath “Anything I need to know before I take him home?” he asked.

“I already told your wife a good amount of it on the phone. Did she fill you in?” Jake nodded “Alright, even though there may be something we need to talk about. He has been wandering off during playtime and his falls and injuries have been getting more frequent.”

Jake nodded his head again “I did notice that," he agreed.  
“We think it might be time to take him to a therapist," Mrs. Smith told him, the words carefully chosen “We suspect him to have ADHD,”  
Jake’s eyes went wide in shock, “Cool, cool, cool, cool, cool, cool," Jake said, eyes still wide.

“Maybe, you can think it over and we can have a meeting with the school-therapist when you’re ready?” she suggested.

“No doubt, no doubt," Jake kept rambling “I will totally do that," he agreed “I will go get Mac now," still in shock, he made his way over to Mac who was sitting on the bench working on his drawing. Jake recognized what the boy was drawing immediately: A reindeer. , “Hey, buddy. That’s a nice reindeer you’re drawing there.”

“It’s Sven. I would draw Kristoff and Olaf and Anna and Elsa too but I’m better at reindeers. Maybe I will draw Sven a friend. Do you think he would rather like to have a girl as a friend or a boy? I can draw both. A girl reindeer is just a bit smaller than the boy reindeer and they do both have antlers. Did you know that? Isn’t that cool?” Mac rambled while he showed off his drawn reindeer.

“That is in fact really cool," Jake gave his son an affectionate smile, the shock of his prior conversation almost forgotten “Are you ready to go, squirt?”

“Yes, but I have to finish my drawing today. Sven needs a friend. Maybe I can do it in Grandpa Ray’s office?” Mac said and smiled cheekily.

“Who said anything about visiting Grandpa Holt?” Jake asked and couldn’t help but pick Mac up again. He just needed the reassurance that his boy was fine.

“I did!” Mac said with all the confidence he could muster.

“Let me call your Mom first to make sure she’s fine with it," Jake gave in. He needed to talk to Amy about the news he just got anyway.

* * *

“Mommy!” Mac squealed and threw himself into Amy’s arms “I fell off a tree and now there’s a bump on my head and I drew Sven right after Daddy came to pick me up. I raced Daddy to the playground so I still had time to draw," Mac explained eagerly awaiting his mother’s response.

“He just ran off and he’s really fast," Jake defended himself as soon as Amy shot him an unimpressed look while Mac talked about the race.

“I bet your drawing is really pretty, baby. Are you sure you’re alright, though?” she asked her son and tightened her grip around him just a little.

“I’m fine. Can I see Grandpa Ray? Please?” Mac begged and wiggled free of Amy’s grip “I need to show him my reindeer drawing and his office is great to finish my reindeer drawing too because Sven needs a friend. I bet Grandpa Ray even has candy hidden in his office again," Mac rambled on before his eyes went wide and he realized his mistake “I wasn’t supposed to talk about the Candy but it’s just for me anyway. You would never steal my candy, right? You put people who steal in jail," Mac concluded his speech.

“Of course, we wouldn’t steal your candy," Amy reassured her son and started talking to her husband “You mentioned, you needed to talk to me?” Jake nodded. Mac pulled on his mother’s sleeve, clearly eager to get to Holt’s office “I will ask Captain Holt if he’s alright with looking after Mac for a few minutes," Amy gave her husband a reassuring smile and let himself be pulled in the direction of Holt’s office by Mac.

Before she could jump into action and stop the with excitement buzzing four-year-old to knock before entering her boss's office, Mac had already stormed in there. Mac announced himself by yelling “Grandpa Ray!” and ran behind the desk to climb on Holt’s lap.

“Hello, young McClane," Captain Holt said, his face and tone of voice blank as always.

“I’m so sorry, sir. Jake was right, he is really fast," Amy apologized profusely “He was just so excited to see you.”

“It is quite alright, Sergeant Santiago," Holt said and turned his attention back to the young boy sitting on his lap “I heard about your little accident. Are you feeling alright, young McClane?”

“I fell off a tree and now I got a bump on my head but it doesn’t hurt anymore and now I get to spend time with you Grandpa Ray, so it’s alright. Do you want to see my reindeer drawing?” before Holt even had the time to answer the boy’s question, Peralta trotted into his office, carrying Mac’s preschool backpack.

“His drawing is in here if you want to see it. I’m sure it wouldn’t bother you to watch him for a few minutes?” Jake said, his smile innocent. Holt knew Jake long enough to see that something was bothering his best detective.

“Of course, I will watch McClane," he agreed and took the little backpack Jake was handing him.

“Thank you so much, sir. We will be right back," Amy promised. Mac was already busy getting his drawing out of his backpack and therefore didn’t even notice the two of them leaving Holt’s office.

* * *

“Talk to me, babe. What are you so worried about?” Amy started the conversation as soon as they entered the evidence room. She squeezed his hand reassuringly.

“Mrs. Smith came to me and told me that Mac had been wandering off a lot and his falls and injuries had been getting more frequent," Jake started his explanation “She suggested that we make an appointment with the school therapist. They suspect he has ADHD," he took a closer look at his wife’s facial expression, he couldn’t find any signs of shock “This doesn’t seem to surprise you?” he questioned.

“To be honest, I did see some of the signs and ADHD is in his family tree after all," she explained and nodded her head.

“It is?” Jake asked, clearly confused.

Amy was the one looking surprised now “Your Dad told me you’ve been diagnosed with ADHD right before he left. Did you not know that?” she asked, the look of surprise still on her face.

The color drained from Jake’s face “No, I did not know that," he swallowed hard.

“I’m so sorry, Jake," she said, pulling him in for a hug “I can’t believe you didn’t know," she whispered before rubbing his back soothingly.

“We should definitely take him to the school therapist then, huh," Jake concluded still wrapped up in Amy’s hug, his voice stronger already.

Amy agreed with him and loosened her grip on him.  
Jake slowly brought some distance between the two “I will take him home for the day. Maybe we can just cuddle up on the couch and watch some TV," Jake suggested and got an approving smile from his wife.

“Are you sure, you’re feeling up to that? You just got pretty surprising news, to say the least," Amy questioned, her eyes soft and affectionate.

“I will be fine. We can talk more when you get home," Jake reassured his wife before pressing a kiss to her forehead “I love you," he added and took her hand in his again.

“I love you too," she squeezed his hand reassuringly.

Their heartfelt moment was interrupted by Charles storming into the room, an angry look on his face “Mac hurt himself and you didn’t call me?”

“I knew you were going undercover today and didn’t want to blow your cover," Jake answered truthfully “It also wasn’t that big of a deal. He fell off a tree and has a little bump on his head. He’s fine.”

“I guess, I can see why you didn’t call me," Charles acceded after a few seconds of silence. Charles threw an apprehensive look at Jake “But if it wasn’t that big of a deal, why do you look like you’ve seen a ghost?”

“It’s nothing. Just don’t worry about it. Let it go," Jake snapped and hurried seemingly out of the room.

Amy gave Charles a helpless shrug before following her husband’s lead. Worry started to boil up in her tummy as she made her way to Holt’s office. For the first time in forever, she felt like she had no idea what her husband was going through right now. She felt bad for telling him the way she did but she felt even worse because Jake hadn’t known that important fact about himself in the first place. Her thoughts got interrupted by the sight of Jake standing in Holt’s office, Mac placed on his shoulders.

“Hi, Ames," he said, his voice as chipper as always. Jake’s number one coping mechanism to repress his feelings clearly at work “I’m taking Mac home. We’re having a Daddy-Son Day.”

“Sounds great," Amy agreed. She knew from experience that pressuring Jake to talk wouldn’t work “Try not to burn the house down," she added for good measure.

“Have a nice day with your son, Peralta," Holt threw in and got a nod from Jake and a goofy smile from Mac in return. With one last kiss on Amy’s cheek, Jake left the office, closing the door behind him.

“Is there a reason, you’re still in my office?” Holt questioned while putting away the drawn picture Mac left him “You do look troubled. Are you sure you are up to keep doing your work?”

“Of course, sir. Jake took care of Mac for a full year while I was at work. He will be fine for a few hours," Amy said unconvincingly.

“I did not question Jake’s ability to look after his son. I questioned your ability to get work done," Holt specified “Are you alright?”

“This is a work environment and I need to talk to Jake first, so I will tell you tomorrow if I’m alright or not," Amy stated and gave Holt a weak smile.

“Will your family still be able to attend the weekly scheduled Friday night dinner?” Holt kept the conversation going.

“Yes, of course," Amy agreed without a second thought.

“Great," Holt answered.

* * *

“Daddy? Can we watch Frozen?” Mac asked as soon as his little butt hit the couch. Jake just nodded and put the movie on, while Mac started to hum the song about Reindeers being better than people. All through the first few minutes of the movie, Mac looked at Jake, the concern clear in his eyes “Are you alright, Dad? Are you mad at me? Did I do something?” Mac rambled, his voice growing more unsteady with every said word. Jake had no idea how the kid figured out he wasn’t feeling too good and felt guilty as soon as those words had left Mac’s mouth.

Jake immediately pulled Mac into his lap and kissed his forehead “No, baby. You did nothing wrong and I’m not mad at you," Jake said, his voice full of guilt “I’m sorry that I made you feel that way. It’s just been a hard day.”

Mac still didn’t look too convinced, cuddling into his father’s chest none the less “Is it because I hurt myself again?” he asked. Jake sighed and took a deep breath, trying to come up with an answer.  
“Let me preface this with making clear that none of this is your fault, okay?," Mac nodded slightly and watched Jake pause the movie before he kept speaking “Your teacher approached me today and told me that you might have something called ADHD," Jake explained “You might not understand what that is yet and you might even be too young for me to tell you, but I think it’s important, to be honest with you.”

“Brian has ADHD. His mom explained to me that he gets distracted a lot and sometimes doesn’t think about doing something before doing it," Mac recalled. Jake nodded along with his explanation, not sure if he could explain it better at the moment.

“That’s a really cut down version of explaining it, but it certainly isn’t wrong," he reassured Mac “We can talk more about it later if you’re interested or have questions," Mac nodded before Jake kept speaking “Anyway, the reason why I’m a little absent and lost in thought right now is that apparently I have ADHD and didn’t know it until today.”

“Twinsies!” Mac yelled before putting his hand up, clearly expecting a High Five. Jake chuckled before giving in and high-fiving the boy.

“Well, not yet actually. You still need to see a doctor so we know for sure," Jake explained. Mac just nodded and cuddled back into his Dad’s chest.

“Can we watch Frozen now?" Mac asked, his innocent eyes staring up at Jake. 

“Of course, Mackie Mouse," Jake softly kissed his son’s forehead before letting the movie play again.

* * *

By the time Amy came back from work, Jake had already made dinner and her two boys were sitting on the couch with their plates in their laps watching some documentary, she suspected had reindeer in it. Amy rolled her eyes at the two but couldn’t bring herself to actually be mad about Jake letting Mac watch TV while eating. Normally she’s sure she would be really annoyed and she would snap at Jake for doing so later on but she also learned early on to pick her fights with Jake. She also saw how tired and exhausted her husband really was just by looking at him. She couldn’t really blame him for that either and in situations like this, her husband maybe had a point in having said “Rules are made to be broken” all these years ago. 

“Hey, you two. How are my boys?” Amy said as a greeting and kissed both of them on the forehead to get their attention. That’s another thing she learned when it came to TV shows that Mac was interested in, his ears stopped working. At first, she thought he was doing it deliberately to annoy her but with time she learned he genuinely didn’t notice anything else once he thought something was actually worth his attention. Jake was the one bringing it up and surprised her by comparing it to his own experiences in a long drawn out PowerPoint presentation.

“We are watching a documentary about Greenland," Mac explained after Jake paused the video “Look, Mommy! There are the reindeer! Finally! The last time we saw some reindeer on the screen Dad insisted on skipping that part. I was mad at him. They talked about Santa and why he got reindeer, Mommy-” Mac was clearly still a bit upset. Amy noticed because he suddenly started looking down at his plate instead of her or the screen “-and Dad just skipped through it all. But it’s fine now, he promised me we could eat dinner on the couch if I stopped being upset," now Mac’s eyes went wide with regret “You weren’t supposed to know, that we eat dinner on the couch. Why are you here already, Mommy?” Amy couldn’t deny that she felt a pang of hurt upon hearing her son whine that last sentence but she also knew her son sometimes just didn’t really think about how his words could be affecting others.

“Mac," Jake sighed “It’s alright. No harm done, okay? I shouldn’t have asked you to keep it a secret anyway. I’m sorry," her husband apologized and gave her an apologetic smile “Also, aren’t you glad Mommy is back? You told me you missed her just before I made dinner.”

“I missed you too, baby," Amy reassured Mac and sat down next to him on the couch. She gave him another kiss on the forehead.

“Hey! What about me? I want another kiss too," Jake said mocking hurt. Amy gave him a smile before leaning over Mac to give Jake a quick kiss on the lips.

“Well apparently, I have two children to raise," Amy rolled her eyes playfully. 

Mac giggled before shouting “She called you a child, Daddy!” Jake started tickling their four-year-old and exclaimed “Who’s the child now!”

“Okay, that’s enough," Amy interrupted the two after several minutes of tickling had passed “Don’t get him too hyped up. It’s bedtime soon," she said to Jake before standing up “I’m going to borrow your Dad for a minute, yeah?" she asked Mac who just nodded. Jake let the video start playing again and grabbed the empty plates before standing up and walking behind Amy to the kitchen.

As soon as they got to the kitchen Jake started apologizing “I’m sorry about letting him eat on the couch and I’m sorry we ate without you. I wasn’t sure when you would get home and I didn’t want to interrupt you during work by texting and he was about to throw a tantrum because of that whole Santa thing, so I had to do something, Ames. They were about to tell him that Santa isn’t real and I just couldn’t let that happen. He’s just four and he’s so big already and-” Amy interrupted her husband’s rambling by kissing him. She felt him relax into her after a few seconds. Slowly she pulled away, having reached her main goal.

“It’s fine, Jake. I’m not mad," Amy reassured him, taking his hand into hers “You had a tough day. Let’s just not make the eating in front of the TV thing a habit, okay?" Jake nodded and pulled her into his arms "You really did miss me, huh?” she murmured into his chest and felt Jake nodding against her head.

“I talked about ADHD with Mac," Jake whispered into her hair “It wasn’t much but he knows what’s going on. I wanted to be honest," Amy was the one to nod this time.

“We will talk about all that later, okay?” she said and pulled away from Jake to look him in the eyes. Jake’s eyes told her all she needed to know in most cases but this one was just too complicated. There wasn’t just sadness, confusion, or disappointment in his eyes, she also saw some form of joy in them. She assumed the joy came from spending time with Mac all day because she knew Jake loved that little boy and it didn’t matter how hard to handle Mac gets Jake had always found some kind of solution. Amy may have not approved every solution her husband found and every deal he and her son made but there wasn’t any doubt in her mind how much of a great Dad Jake actually was.

“Yeah, we will," Jake agreed with her and tore her away from her own thoughts “But now we got a little munchkin who needs his regular bedtime," Jake smiled at her “I’m really glad, you’re here for storytime. It’s been ages since you’ve read him a story.”

Amy sighed “I know. Work has just been so crazy lately," she let her eyes wander to the ground in shame.

Jake used his hand to carefully lift up her chin so she had to look him in the eye “I didn’t mean to make you feel guilty, Ames," he said, the regret plastered all over his face “I know how much you love your work and you do spend enough time with Mac. Please, believe me.”

Amy gave him a grateful smile “Thank you for being here when I can’t.”

“You’re welcome. That’s what stay-at-home dads are here for, aren’t they?" Jake chuckled.

“You are not a stay-at-home dad anymore, Babe," Amy was also chuckling “You haven’t been for over three years now. It’s time for you to stop patting yourself on the back," her voice was teasing and her smile matched her teasing tone perfectly.

“I know all episodes of Dora by heart. Do you know how much courage it took not to scream at her every time she asked another stupid question and the worst part was Mac would just silently sit there doing nothing," Jake ranted but the small smile on his face gave everything away “I’m also still working fewer hours than you do.”

“He was barely a year old. Get over it," Amy rolled her eyes, still smiling while dragging her husband back to the living room by his arm “Come on, Baby, it’s bedtime," Amy announced as soon as she entered the room and saw that the documentary, her son had been watching, was over “Go brush your teeth with Daddy. I will get you a fresh pair of Pyjamas.”

“I want the Paw Patrol Pyjamas today," Mac announced “The red ones, that have Marshall on them," he explained further.

“I will see what I can do but I can’t make any promises," Amy said and smiled triumphantly as Mac gave her an agreeing nod and started running off to the bathroom.

* * *

“Do you actually want me to read the book again?” Amy asked Mac after her fifth reading of the very same book, her voice didn’t really sound annoyed. Jake knew who was standing in the doorway nonetheless knew she didn’t see the point in reading the book again and just ignoring the fact that Mac had it memorized word for word already. He knew how obsessive their kid got and Amy technically knew all about it too but she just wasn’t quite as used to it. It was easier for Jake to get used to his little quirks and obsessions since he had lived through the same experiences during childhood and still got obsessive today. Mac’s name was proof enough for that.

“Yes. Please, Mommy," Mac begged, looking up at Amy with big sad eyes “I love that book," he explained again and cuddled even more into his Mom.  
“Fine," Amy sighed and started reading the book again.  
“When I need a friend who is strong and sincere  
The friend I count on is Sven the reindeer!” she read the first page.  
Mac’s eyes finally started drifting shut. Amy kissed his forehead “I’m not sleeping yet. Keep reading, please.” Mac whispered before yawning.   
“Now Anna is steadyfast and loyal and bold.  
She‘s kind and she‘s funny- her heart is pure gold." She read again but her voice got quieter this time. Amy also didn’t want to give Mac the chance to protest this time, so she kept on reading “Her big sister Elsa has magic, you know. In the blink of an eye, she can summon up snow.” she heard Mac mumble something about snow and he also started humming really quietly. She took that as a for sure sign that he was about to fall asleep. “And don‘t forget Olaf, a snowman so sweet. He is kind from his carrot nose down to his feet.” Mac’s humming went still before she started reading the last sentence of the book “Some people are good- even great- that is true, but reindeer are better and the best, Sven, is you.” she finished reading and looked at Mac sleeping next to her. His soft snoring filled the room.

“You did it, Ames," Jake whispered, still watching her from the doorway “He’s asleep," he smiled at her.

She carefully stood up from the bed and walked over to her husband to kiss him “He’s still adorable when he’s asleep," Amy mumbled against Jake’s lips.

“Can we maybe not talk about our sleeping son, while making out?" Jake said and pulled away “I do not feel comfortable with that.”

“We did not make out, Jake," Amy chuckled and dragged him to the couch “We seriously don’t have enough make-out sessions, if you can’t remember what making out is like.”

“We could change that," Jake gave her a sly smile before pulling her into his lap and kissing her again. 

“Jake," she sighed, pulling away "As much fun as this is. We need to talk, remember?”

“Yeah, right. Cool, cool, cool, cool, cool, cool, cool, no doubt, no doubt, no doubt," Jake rambled. Amy sighed again and sat down next to Jake, her legs still resting on his lap. She immediately noticed how Jake avoided her eye and kept staring at her legs instead “Jake? Are you okay?” she asked. Jake’s eyes met hers and his whole face immediately went soft.

“I’m fine. Well, as fine one can be in my situation," Jake reassured her, while lazily stroking her legs “It would have been a really good piece of information to have. That’s all.”

“What did you tell Mac about ADHD?” Amy asked a question just the way she always does when she gets the feeling Jake’s mind is stuck somewhere. Jake explained to her what they had talked about and told her how limited his knowledge had been “Maybe we could do some research together?” Amy suggested. 

Jake just nodded his head “Do you think it’s too late to call my mom? I need to talk to her about this as soon as possible.”

“I don’t think it’s too late to call her. Plus, this is a really important conversation to have," Jake nodded and took out his phone. 

Amy’s mind started wandering again during Jake’s conversation with his mother. She still couldn’t believe that Jake’s parents kept his ADHD a secret. She wasn’t surprised when his Dad told her a few years back. Jake had always been a poster child for ADHD and she had started noticing the symptoms a few weeks after she started working with him. She had learned a lot about ADHD back when she was still a kid because one of her best friends in middle school had been diagnosed with it. So it really wasn’t hard to see all the signs pointing towards it in Jake’s behavior. His constant fidgeting, his so-called thought journeys, his impulsiveness, it all made sense.

Her really upset husband tore her away from her thoughts.  
“He left because of the diagnosis, didn’t he?” her husband asked, still on the phone with his Mom “So, it actually was my fault," she could see tears glistening in his eyes “I’m fine. Yes, Mac may have it too. I know you’re sorry," Jake started sniffling and hung up the phone quickly after rushed goodbyes. He fell into her Arms. Jake didn’t cry easily. Her heart was aching for her husband, so she held onto him tightly and whispered soothing nothings in his ear.

Jake didn’t react to any comforting words she had to say until she said “The divorce still wasn’t your fault, Jake," Jake looked up at her “You were a child. I’m sure you weren’t a particularly easy child but a child nonetheless. Your parents were the responsible ones. They’re the ones-”

“Don’t say they," Jake corrected her “My mother did everything she could.”

Amy just nodded sadly and took Jake’s hands in hers “You are perfect just the way you are, Jake. You always had ADHD. Giving it a name doesn’t change you in any way. It was always part of you.”

Jake still didn’t look too convinced but nodded his head nonetheless “And you love every part of me?” he asked and Amy gave him a firm nod “You are so cheesy, Ames," Jake laughed. She noticed how he was trying to lighten the mood.

“I love you with or without diagnosed ADHD. It doesn’t matter one bit," she reassured him again “Your ADHD might be the reason you’re such a great detective. You think outside the box and you are so good at multitasking. That’s just part of who you are, Jake.”

Jake nodded his head again “I hate crying," he stated “Can we go to bed?”

“Of course," Amy agreed “We will research ADHD more and figure out what’s the best way to deal with it tomorrow," she promised. Jake gave her a grateful smile “Or I could do the research now and you can go to bed-”

Jake interrupted her “I need cuddles," he said. Amy nodded and gave him an understanding smile.  
“That’s also fine with me," she reassured him before taking his hand and making her way to get ready for bed.

* * *

“Grandpa Ray!” Mac cheered as soon as Captain Holt opened his front door. Mac smiled brightly at the man in front of him “Guess what! I have ADHD. Just like Daddy.”

“Good evening, young McClane," Holt said and politely ignored the absence of a greeting on Mac’s part “I’m glad you all made it here on time," he added and glanced at the boy’s parents.

“I officially have an ADHD diagnosis now. Does that mean, I can be late now?” Jake suggested.

“That’s not how life works, Jake," Amy disagreed. Mac, on the other hand, seemed to be bored by the conversation already as he squeezed himself through the front door in which Holt was still standing in “Mac! You can’t just go in without being invited!” Amy called after her son.

“Apparently, he can," Holt said, his face unreadable as always “You may enter as well," he concluded and moved away from the door to let the two of them in.

Mac was already running around the house clearly searching for something “Where are Grandpa Kevin and Cheddar?” he asked.

“Kevin will be home from work later than anticipated. He will join us as soon as he gets home," Holt explained Kevin’s absence “And Cheddar is upstairs. Your Mom is allergic.”

“Oh, right. Can I go see Cheddar?” Mac begged taking turns to look up at his parents and Holt “I will come down as soon as dinner is ready, I promise.”

Before either of his parents could say anything Holt cut in “Of course, Cheddar will be delighted to see you," Mac didn’t waste any time before running up the stairs “I did not mean to undermine your parental decisions. I did not anticipate that he would run off before getting both of your permissions as well.”

“It’s fine," Amy shrugged and followed Holt into the living room. 

“I’m surprised he asked for permission at all," Jake said once all three of them sat down in the living room.

“Kevin will be here soon. He will bring take out with him," Holt said.

“Take out?" Jake said, clearly surprised “That doesn’t sound like the food we usually eat at Friday night dinners.”

“We like greasy food," Holt deadpanned.

Jake immediately recognized the lie “I’m fine," Jake reassured his Captain “But thank you for thinking of me nonetheless.”

“You are welcome, Jake," Holt said “How did McClane’s appointment with the school therapist go?”

“He officially diagnosed Mac with ADHD," Amy explained “The combined type, so he has both hyperactive as well as inattentive symptoms.”

“But he also said Mac only had a mild form of ADHD, so that’s good," Jake said “I also learned about my own ADHD but Amy already told you about that, I assume.”

“She did," Hold confirmed. Jake had given her his blessing to go ahead and tell their Captain, so he wasn’t surprised.

“I’m really sorry, I took the last few days off. It was just a lot to process and we had all those appointments with Mac and I went to speak with my mom-” Jake said but got cut off by Holt.

“You do not need to apologize for taking time off," Holt interrupted “You would not have been able to solve any cases without things straight first.”

“Thank you," Jake said, smiling gratefully.


End file.
